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| Army Home Page / Units and Organisations / Training Establishments / Public Information |
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WHY THE ARMY NEEDS TO TRAIN
The British Army is held in the highest regard around the world. The fact that France and some Eastern European countries intend to model their armies on ours speaks volumes for the respect in which its skills are held. This respect has been hard-won over recent years in Northern Ireland, the Falkland Islands, the Gulf, Bosnia, Kosovo – and countless peacekeeping operations. But such professionalism does not just happen by chance. It is attained by constant, thorough and tough training, in realistic conditions. The Army Training Estate (ATE) provides the principal facilities to achieve this. |
ORGANISATION
The Army Training Estate in the UK is controlled by Headquarters ATE, based at Headquarters Training Support Command (Land) at Warminster, near Salisbury. The Estate is sub-divided into 12 regionally-based areas, each with its own headquarters and staff. ATE West Midlands (ATE WM) consists of the three Major Training Areas and camps at Swynnerton, Nesscliff and Leek, together with the four range complexes at Kingsbury, Whittington, Tyddesley Wood and Llansilin. These seven sites cover 6,530 acres (2,642 hectares) in the counties of Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire. |
TRAINING IN THE WEST MIDLANDS
ATE WM was formed in 1999. It provides the major training facilities for troops whose units are based in the Midlands. It also hosts units from most other parts of the UK who come to take advantage of the special facilities available. ATE WM thus enables the training for many different types of military operations. This leaflet describes some of this training, which is designed to make the best use of these facilities at various locations, currently running at about 300,000 man training days annually. This leaflet gives a brief description of each training area, together with its typical usage. |
SWYNNERTON TRAINING AREA
Swynnerton Training Area was an ordnance factory producing, packing and storing munitions, originally during the Second World War. Located in Staffordshire, six miles south of Newcastle-under-Lyme and just west of the M6, between junctions 14 and 15, today it consists of a Camp and Training Area covering 563 acres (228 hectares) of MoD freehold land. It is ring-fenced, has no public access and has no bylaws affecting it. The area contains numerous old buildings and bunkers, an excellent road and track network (all of which is ‘drive-on-the-right’), open and wooded countryside, and a lagoon fed by the River Meece with associated marshland.
The Training Area can sustain up to 800 troops, from different units, training simultaneously, over short to medium periods. It is used for all levels of
 | Command Post exercises, and by all types of ‘dismounted’ (i.e. on foot) infantry, up to company size, including Territorial Army (TA) and Cadets. Large logistic units requiring road and track circuits use its hard standing, woods and buildings in which to establish and disperse; Royal Engineer units perform practical work projects; and it is used for watermanship and driver training – and by the Royal Marines and Royal Air Force. |
NESSCLIFF TRAINING AREA
 | Nesscliff Training Area was originally constructed during the Second World War as an ammunition depot. It continued in operation until the 1960s, after which it became a training area. It is located in Shropshire, between Shrewsbury and Oswestry, one mile west of the A5 (T), and consists of a camp and training area covering 1,717 acres (695 hectares) of MoD freehold land with 18 agricultural tenancies and one Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Bordered to the south by the River Severn, the landscape is one of truly English countryside, consisting of grazing meadows, hedgerows, ditches, woodlands and livestock, which makes it suitable for low-level ‘dismounted’ infantry training for up to two companies. It is also interspersed with old ammunition bunkers (some of which are let to farmers), and an excellent track and road system permitting wheeled vehicle access to all parts. It has hard standing, woods and buildings in which to disperse. This means that the Training Area can be used simultaneously by up to three Royal Signals/Royal Logistic Corps squadrons, or for a complete Field Hospital, Field Ambulance and Field Workshops exercise. It, too, is used for TA and cadet camps. |
LEEK (ANZIO) CAMP AND
LEEK AND UPPER HULME TRAINING AREA
 | Leek (Anzio) Camp is located in the village of Blackshaw Moor in Staffordshire, on the southern edge of the Peak District National Park (PDNP), three miles north of Leek, on the A53 Leek to Buxton road. The Training Area itself is three miles north-east of the camp, 1,600 feet above sea level. It consists of 2,702 acres (1,093 hectares) of rugged and challenging open moor, all overlapped by the PDNP. The area is a mixture of MoD freehold, leasehold, licensed and private land, covered by seven agricultural tenancies. The majority of the area is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), and a Special Protection Area for birds. It also contains two Scheduled Ancient Monuments. Vehicular access is by public roads and there are few tracks.
The Training Area is the largest training area in ATE WM and – with Leek (Anzio) Camp – can cater for battalion-size units (up to 800 soldiers). Again, it is used for ‘dismounted’ infantry training. Its rugged terrain also makes it ideal for teaching infantry skills in a challenging environment, and for adventurous training. |
PART OF OUR LOCAL COMMUNITIES
Each of the three Training Areas above is run by a Commandant, based on-site, with a small clerical and administrative staff for support. Every effort is made by the ATE WM to minimise the impact of military training on people’s lives. Training area Commandants regularly attend parish council meetings and are the point of contact on local civilian issues. |
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CAREFUL CONSERVATION:
A UNIQUE HERITAGE
 | From the wild moors of Leek and Upper Hulme Training Area on the edge of the Peak District National Park, to the quintessentially English pastoral scenery of Nesscliff in Shropshire, ATE WM consists of a range of landscapes and habitats. Within the 6,530 acres (2,642 hectares) that make up ATE WM, there are SSSIs at Kingsbury Wood and Leek and Upper Hulme Training Area, the latter of which forms part of the Leek Moors SSSI. Additionally, the bird life of Leek has been given European protection under the South Pennine Moors Special Protection Area. There are also the three Scheduled Ancient Monuments at Leek and Nesscliff. The Estate’s landscape generally differs from the more intensively-farmed land around it; and so modern agriculture has affected our land to a lesser extent, with traditional field boundaries being largely retained – and in some places re-established – as have areas of woodland. On some sites, too, ponds have been created on areas too wet to be of use for military training.
Fauna and flora of note on the Estate include curlew, snipe, lapwing, otters, dormice and the lesser butterfly orchid. The MoD pays careful attention, in managing this heritage, to preserve it for future generations. |
CONSERVATION GROUPS
There are nearly 200 military conservation groups within the UK. The Army takes its role in conservation seriously and recognises the unique value of its Training Area.
In ATE WM there is a formal conservation group at Kingsbury and informal groups at Swynnerton and Nesscliff. Bi-annual management meetings are held at Leek in accordance with the Management Plan which relates to the land leased/licensed to the MoD by the Peak District National Park Authority. The meetings are attended by representatives from the Park, the Training Area, ATE WM and Defence Estates, with further help and advice available from English Nature and the Countryside Agency. An annual works programme is undertaken by the MoD in accordance with the Management Plan. This involves tasks such as the re–building of dilapidated dry-stone walls, heather burning, and the planting and maintenance of native species of trees.
Elsewhere on the Estate, ATE WM is assisted in its conservation works by wildlife trusts and local colleges, such as Walford Agricultural College, who undertake survey work, including the annual MoD bird count. Local naturalists and farmers, who can provide useful information regarding flora and fauna on the Estate, also assist whenever possible.
Conservation groups are always open to new members. Membership is free and the groups are pleased to recruit anyone prepared to help in monitoring and the compilation of records of the wildlife in the area. |
ENVIRONMENT AND CONSERVATION
As with the rest of the Training Estate, ATE WM is conscious of, and has full regard for, environmental, conservation and archaeological sites, many of which have been protected precisely because of the Army’s stewardship. Together with the local people, we continually strive to accommodate the interests of both the military and other stakeholders in the guardianship of our open spaces; and we have made excellent progress in maintaining the development of sophisticated planning and management systems to ensure that training on our Estate is appropriate in terms of the area, nature of ground, and seasonal factors – for example, by taking into account farming practices and conservation considerations such as the breeding seasons of rare species. |
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STRIKING A BALANCE
This all forms part of the continuous process of striking a balance between the Army’s training needs and the interests of the general public and other groups whose special interests we take fully into account. In close co-operation with both statutory and non-statutory bodies, we shall continue to strive to achieve the balance required. |
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PUBLIC ACCESS
The first priorities for any training area must be military training and public safety. However archaeology, conservation and agriculture follow closely. Public access is encouraged wherever and whenever possible. At Swynnerton, although public access is not generally permitted, annual open days have been introduced, and these will continue. Nesscliff has a number of public footpaths crossing the northern part of the Training Area. At Leek there are approximately 12 km of statutory public rights of way, the majority of which are footpaths. There is one bridleway to the south-west of the Area and an open access area around Merryton Low. Leek and Upper Hulme Training Area can also be used by the public, with permission, for activities which do not disturb the quiet enjoyment or conservation interest of the area, such as organised walks. Public access to the range impact area is however, prohibited at all times. When on a public footpath that crosses a training area: |
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Follow the Country Code
• Enjoy the countryside and respect its life and work
• Guard against all risk of fire
• Use gates and stiles to cross fences, hedges and walls
• Leave livestock, crops and machinery alone
• Take your litter home
• Take special care on country roads
• Make no unnecessary noise
• Keep to the public paths across farmland
• Fasten all gates
• Keep dogs under close control
• Protect wildlife, plants and trees
• Help to keep all water clean
Great care is taken to ensure the safety of these walks, although areas used by the Armed Forces for training can obviously be dangerous – and this applies throughout the ATE WM. Anyone walking on MoD land must obey all signs and bylaws relevant to the area being visited.
Remember! Unexploded Ordnance: do not touch any military debris.
Always comply with the following: |
Safety
Do not enter areas where there is an obvious military presence.
• Do not approach, touch, or pick up any objects lying on the ground
• Keep to the footpaths and do not deviate from them
• The use of metal detectors is prohibited
• Keep away from all buildings, bunkers and military installations except where it is clearly shown that public access is permitted
• No camping or fires are permitted |
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
In addition to this Public Information Leaflet for the West Midlands, the ATE, and its sister land-agency organisation, Defence Estates (DE), each produces other literature. The ATE Annual Report summarises yearly progress by the ATE organisation; DE’s Walks on MoD Land details a number of walks on 10 ATE estates including Salisbury Plain, Castlemartin, Catterick, Dartmoor and Otterburn. ATE also produces In the Field magazine, published each autumn, which contains news from some of the smaller training areas around the country, as well as updates on developments in management techniques. Finally, DE’s annual publication Sanctuary contains articles about the Defence Estate across the whole country. All these publications are free and can be obtained from the respective addresses below. |
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USEFUL ADDRESSES
Headquarters ATE West Midlands
Swynnerton Training Area, Cold Meece, Nr Stone,Staffordshire ST15 0QN
01785 760643 (Ext 8425)
Headquarters Army Training Estate
HQ Training Support Command (Land), Warminster Training Centre,
Warminster, Wiltshire BA12 0DJ
01985 222093
Defence Estates
Blakemore Drive, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B75 7RL
0121 311 2000 |
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TRAINING THE ARMY AND PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT |
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